What Is Adenosine Triphosphate?
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is a nucleotide, a type of molecule that makes up deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA), the building blocks of genetic material. When it is not part of an RNA or DNA molecule, ATP serves to transport chemical energy within cells for various metabolic purposes. Some mechanisms for which ATP is essential are the synthesis of chemical compounds such as proteins, cell motility or movement, and cell division. Adenosine triphosphate is made of other nucleotides, adenosine diphosphate (ADP) or adenosine monophosphate (AMP), and when it takes part in metabolic functions, it reverts to these precursors. Adenosine triphosphate consists of adenosine, made of the nucleobase adenine and an attached ribose sugar, and three phosphates, the alpha, beta, and gamma phosphates. In plants, it is created through photosynthesis, which uses sunlight as an energy source and converts carbon dioxide into sugar. In animals, ATP is created through cellular respiratio